Saturday, September 29, 2007

I Love Music

Music has been my friend for a very long time. Sometimes it has been my best friend, sometimes it has been a friend I haven't spoken to in a while and other times music has been a friend I'm angry with.

There have been times in my life that music just didn't fit. For whatever reason I just wasn't listening to music. There has been a year span or so when I just didn't want to listen to music. My music library just attracted dust. And then there are times when I wake up to music, listen to it on my way to wherever I'm going and it's the first thing I turn on when I get home.

Music is my way of remembering events and people. Sad times and great times all have a song or songs attached to them. There are some songs that as soon as they begin to play they bring tears to my eyes. Those songs aren't necessarily sad songs per se but they remind me of a sad time. I used to avoid those songs but now listening to them is almost like therapy. I can listen and remember what was going on in my life when I first heard the song. Over time if I come to terms with a particular memory, the feeling that the song inspires in me may change. A song that once made me sad might later make me contemplative.

My taste in music runs the gamut, rock to soul to neo-soul to jazz to folk and even some country. If I were to be stranded on a deserted island here is some of the music I would take;

I have lost more music over the years than I own. I've bought Promise by Sade at least a dozen times and Joan Armatrading's Greatest Hits about ten times. I've given music away, left it on airplanes, in hotel rooms, in apartments I've moved from, you name a way to lose music I've probably lost it that way.

Digital music downloads are my music savior! Although sometimes I prefer to have the Cd itself. A few artists still do concept albums, so if you only buy a single or two you really won't get the artist.And MP3 players! Oh my where to start. To have the ability to have two or three hundred songs with you wherever you go is so amazing.

There are drawbacks to the digital age though. I miss album art. Itunes displays the album cover but it's not the same as having it in your hand to look at or even actual record album covers. Some of those were so incredible. I'm tempted to start collecting record album covers as art. All in all though I wouldn't trade my digital library to go back exclusively to Cd's. I love waking up in the morning and making a music mix according to how I'm feeling or what I'm going to be doing. And it only takes three or four minutes! (I stopped in the middle of writing this to make a mix) Do you remember how annoying it was to copy your favorite songs from Cd to cassette? That was a pain. Nope I don't miss lugging around Cd cases and those darn skipping portable Cd players. Good riddance! And lets not even talk about cassette Walkman.

Some day soon they will find a way to download music directly to our brains.

Music is also about discovery. I love the joy of finding a new artist that I like or rediscovering one that I'd forgotten about. I discovered Joan Armatrading by pure chance. Years ago while looking around a music store in New York I happened upon a cassette by her, I took a chance without even hearing it and bought it. And I'm so glad I did, her music has been a joy in my life. Sometimes even now if I'm at a flea market or music store I still buy music by an artist I've never heard of just because of the Cd cover art or titles of the songs.

I couldn't imagine a life without music. It fills so many spaces in my life.

Music has helped me celebrate and it's helped me through heartbreak. It has kept me company when I was lonely and it has made my body move even when I didn't want it to. Music has been parties and it's been long drives and airplane flights. It's been walks on the beach and walks through city streets. Music has been love and it's been pain. Music has been a bookmark that never fails to take me back to a particular page.